Wick cleaner and shaper



F. W. SPANGLER. WICK CLEANER AND SHAPER.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 1. 191a.

Patented Aug. 10,1920

Fly 4.

' INVENTOR.

BYW/WL A TTORNEYS.

MUNITED STATES PA-TENT OFFICE FREDERICK W. SPANGLER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO THE MANTLE LAM]? COMPANY or AMERICA, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION or wIoK CLEANER. AND SHAPER.

ILLINOIS.

Application filed .Tune 1, 1918. Serial No. 237,708.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK W. SPAN- GLER, citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Wick Cleaners and Shapers; and I do herebydeclare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The invention is a device for cleaning and shaping wicks of the annular type or such as are used in Argand burners. Said invention is especially useful in connection with burners of the non-luminous type which are employed for the heating of light-giving incandescent mantles.

Experience has shown that the successfuloperation of an incandescent mantle lamp is largely dependent upon the proper trimming and shaping of the lamp wick and the cleaning of the parts adjacent to the' wick, and that the lamp users do not take the necessary precautions to properly trim and care for the wick or to clean the parts to which foreign matters have become adherent. p v

The invention enables the user of a lamp of the above described type to mechanically and accurately trim and shape a lamp wick and at the same time to scrape away any accumulated crusts of carbon deposited on the metal parts of the lamp adjacent to the wick. By the use of this wick trimming device, the wick may-be trimmed and sized in such manner as to assume the form and have the condition which in practice have been found the most satisfactory as regards the area of the exposed wick surface, the de-' near the wick free from deposits of carbonwhich, being absorptive, are liable to unde-' sirably increase the vaporizing surface and consequently evaporation of fuel at certain points in the circumference of the burner and also interfere with the introduction of air, thereby affecting the shape of the flame.

Experiments have shown that there is a preferred manner of forming or trimming a wick for use in incandescent mantle lamps, andthat when such.a wick is formed with a shghtly sloping or tapered edge, better results are attained than where the wick is given a true transverse cut.

I Patented Aug. 10, 1920.

Experiments;

have also shown that it is desirable to form a wick with predetermlned inside and outside diameters so thatthe wick when it is elevated will form a hollow cylinder which is properly spaced from the air admission members of the burner.

The-wick cleaner and shaper is so constructed as to mechanically combine with the burner upon which it may be rotated while carrying into effect the cleaning and shap ng process, during which the wick is put 1n perfect condition for use.

igure 1 is a view in elevation of the in VBDlZlOIl applied to the upper portion of a burner;

Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical section; and

Fig. 3 is a plan'view showing the cleaner and shaper from beneath, and Fig. l afragmentary view-in elevation.

- A is the spacing element of a lam and B the upper section of the outer wick tube which is carried thereby. b is what is lmown as a flame flange encirclin the up-' per end of the wick tube section C is the inner wick tube and D the wick of the burner.

E is the improved cleaner and shaperand 'F its knurled cap which, encircles and is secured to the body of the cleaner and shaper by indentations w. The device has a tubular body 6 of cylindrical form, from which is cut andbent blades e having at their ends flanges e carrying downwardly deflected scraping edges, 3 which rest upon the flame flange b. -The cap F is provided with a cylindrical body f, the lower edge body fits loosely in the innerwick tube and by virtue of the lateral displacement of'its upper portion fits also the annular wick and thereby prevents inward displacement of any parts of the wick during the cleaning and shaping operation. The blades are coextensive in length with the exposed portion of the wick and the flanges e? are in length equal to the width of the flame, flange b. The wick therefore during the cleaning and shaping operation is supported on its inside by the tubular body 6, the result being that the cleaning and shaping operation of the blades 6 effectuates no undesirable distortion. These blades during the operation of the device travel around the flame flange 7) upon which their flanges 0 rest. The result of the operation is the production of a wick-tip of perfectly circular form, and

one which is free from any fibrous projections. The end of the wick takes the shape of the blades 6' which as already stated are formed from a bent portion of the tubular body e, the curvature of said arms determining the exact shape of the tip points of origin, and means adapted to cooperate with the outer wick tube of a burner for limiting the descent of said cleaner in a wick tube, said points of origin being disposed above said means.

2. A revoluble wick cleaner and shaper for a tubular wick, having a cylindrical body the upper portion of which conforms to the inside of the wick to thereby sustain and maintain the shape thereof during the trimming operation, and provided with downwardly deflected trimming and shaping blades for removing incrustations from and uniformly beveling the exterior of the wick.

3. A wick cleaner and shaper having a tubular portion or body and curved blades extending outward and downward therefrom, said blades being provided at their ends with outwardly extending horizontal flanges.

4. A wick cleaner and shaper having a tubular portion or body, blades extending laterally therefrom and terminating below their points of origin, and reinforcing arms for said blades. 7

5;A wick cleaner and shaper having a tubular portion or body, a cap for said body,

7 blades extending outward and downward from said portion or body and reinforcing arms for said blades carried by said cap.

6. A wick cleaner and shaper having a cylindrical body portion, the lower end of which is adapted to fit within the inner wick tube of a burner, and the upper portion of which is cylindrical and enlarged and adapted'to fit within the upper portion of the wick, said cleaner and shaper being provided with outwardly and. downwardly extending blades having a desired curvature.

7 The combination with a burner having a circular wick tube, of a wick cleaner and shaper therefor, said cleaner and shaper having a tubular body fitting within the inner wick tube of the burner in which it may turn and being provided with inclined curved blades for externally beveling and with an enlarged portion for internally shaping the wick.

8. A wick cleaner having a lower body portion adapted to fit into a wick tube and an upper body portion of greater diameter than the lower body portion, said upper portion being adapted to form the inside diameter of the wick to a predetermined size.

9. A wick cleaner and shaper including a tubular body portion, a cap telescoping .therewith, outwardly and downwardly extending blades originating in said tubular body portion, and reinforcing arms for said blades originating in said cap.

10. A rotary wick cleaner and shaper, including means for beveling and shaping an annular wick, and additional means for scraping adjacent metal parts of the burner.

11. A rotary wick shaper, including blades for beveling the tip of an annular wick, said blades having each a terminal supporting flange.

12. A wick cleaner and shaper having a trimming blade for operating upon a wick, and means adapted to rest on the flange of an outer wick tube for sustaining and cansing said trimming blade to operate above the top of a wick tube during the trimming operation.

13. A rotary wick cleaner and shaper, including means extending over an exposed tip of a wick to size the interior of a wick and bevel its tip, said means conforming to the curvature of the inner wall of the wick.

.14. A wick cleaner and shaper having a tubular body portion and a wick-trimming blade extending laterally therefrom and terminating belowits point of origin, said blade terminating ina downwardly deflected scraping edge for cleaning the upper end of a wick tube.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

FREDERICK w. SPANGLER. 

